Category Archives: Government and Religion

Did USAFA Chaplains Participate in Historical or Halloween Event?

usafachaplainsby Sonny Hernandez

On October 29, 2016, US Air Force Academy chaplains participated in a self-described ecumenical event to “explore the upcoming 500th anniversary of the Lutheran Reformation.” A USAFA release described the event as analogous to the service “led by Pope Francis and Bishop Munib Younan in Lund Sweden, on October 31,” where Catholics and Lutherans were “urged to take decisive steps toward unity.”

A Christian observer would not see this type of event as ecumenical, but evil. The Protestant Reformation was not a celebration between Catholics and Lutherans. It was a time of protest and schism because of the Roman Catholic corruption.

Christian scholars who have been impacted by Read more

US Troop Pay Raise Connected to “Gay Rights Feud”

An article at McClatchy (repeated at the Stars and Stripes) linked the previously-discussed Russell Amendment with the more-headline worthy issue of troop pay:

A pay raise for U.S. military troops could face a long wait as Congress steps up a feud over gay rights in trying to wrap up a long-stalled 2017 defense authorization bill.

The borderline-sensationalist headline tops an article that almost exclusively presents the issue as one of the “right to discriminate”:  Read more

Sentencing in Thwarted Terror Attack, but Christians are the Threat

Alexander Blair has been sentenced to 15 months in prison for assisting in what he believed was an attempt to bomb a US military base in Kansas:

He was accused of loaning $100 to 21-year-old John T. Booker Jr. to store what they thought was an explosive device; prosecutors said Booker intended to detonate it outside Fort Riley in northeast Kansas in support of the Islamic State group. The device was a fake bomb built by FBI informants.

Blair is said to have Williams syndrome, which reportedly makes him “susceptible” to manipulation — but does not prevent him from understanding right and wrong.

Booker, as you may recall, was arrested as he was trying to arm what he believed was a 1,000 pound car bomb outside Fort Riley. Booker had actually started the enlistment process to join the US Army — a process that was terminated when the FBI found out he expressed a desire to emulate Nidal Malik Hasan.

Here’s an interesting Read more

US Marines Emphasize Spiritual Fitness

From the US Marine Corps [emphasis added]:

Fitness is a vital part of being a United States Marine. Although we all understand the importance of being physically fit, it is also important to remember the other three aspects of overall fitness: spiritual, mental, and social. All of these aspects are essential to the well-being of each individual Marine and Sailor, and our Corps as a whole…

Research indicates that spiritual fitness plays a key role in resiliency, in our Read more

Is Mikey Weinstein Really a USAFA Honor Graduate?

mikeyhonorRecently, a brief article addressed a fairly simple question: Did Mikey Weinstein Serve in Combat? The basic answer was “who cares?” — except in those cases in which Weinstein himself tries to play the military/combat card.

That was going to be the end of it.  But Mikey didn’t like it.

Weinstein’s lawyer, Randal “Randy” Mathis, sent a letter the next day expressing Weinstein’s displeasure with one of the closing paragraphs of that article:

You wrote that Mr. Weinstein was not an “Honor Graduate” of the United States Air Force Academy.

If there’s one thing that will raise Michael “Mikey” Weinstein’s ire, it’s an affront to his ego — but that’s not exactly what the article said [emphasis added]:  Read more

Casey Weinstein Runs for Office, Embarrassed by the MRFF

Casey Weinstein, son of Michael “Mikey” Weinstein, is running for the state legislature in Ohio. He’s apparently a Democrat — which fits the family profile of the elder Weinstein, who makes a point of saying he’s a “registered Republican” but has only publicly supported Democrats for years. Casey has previously been a local councilman for Hudson City and now seems to be aiming a little higher.

Casey’s specific political aspirations aren’t particularly relevant — except that the Republican party, supporting incumbent Kristina Roegner, recently sent out a mailer highlighting the Weinsteins’ 2005 lawsuit against the US Air Force Academy.  It seems Casey Weinstein has been campaigning on his military credentials (even wearing an Air Force shirt going door-to-door), so he’s engendered interest in his somewhat tense relationship with the military.

In a short article clearly promoted by Weinstein (he even provided the mailer), the “reporter” essentially debunks the political mailer and lauds Casey’s credentials:  Read more

Military Religious Freedom Again at Issue in National Defense Act

It’s been in the paperwork for months, but the “exciting” political environment has overshadowed the potential religious liberty fight brewing in the 2017 National Defense Authorization Act. The House version of the NDAA contains a simple, if seemingly obtuse, statement known as the Russell Amendment (via Rep. Steve Russell, R-OK, who offered the amendment):

Any branch or agency of the Federal Government shall, with respect to any religious corporation, religious association, religious educational institution, or religious society that is a recipient of or offeror for a Federal Government contract, subcontract, grant, purchase order, or cooperative agreement, provide protections and exemptions consistent with sections 702(a) and 703(e)(2) of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C. 2000e-1(a) and 42 U.S.C. 2000e-2(e)(2)) and section 103(D) of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 USC 12113(D)).

The short version of the story is that in 2014 President Obama issued an Executive Order that required anyone wanting to do business with the Federal government to affirmatively state they hire without regard to “sexual orientation or gender identity.”  That could very well affect a large number of contractors who do hire with regard to such issues — because they hire based on the requirements of their religious faith.

The Russell Amendment basically Read more

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